


O, Tannenbaum

by rowofstars



Series: 31 Days of Fandomas 2019 [5]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: 31 Days of Fandomas 2019, Alternate Universe, Christmas, Christmas Fluff, F/M, Family Feels, Hyperion Heights (Once Upon a Time), Love Confessions, Rumplestiltskin | Mr. Gold as Detective Weaver
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-22
Updated: 2019-12-22
Packaged: 2021-02-26 02:06:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 745
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21903760
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rowofstars/pseuds/rowofstars
Summary: Weaver's desire to help Belle get a Christmas tree takes an unexpected, but delightful turn.
Relationships: Belle/Rumplestiltskin | Mr. Gold
Series: 31 Days of Fandomas 2019 [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1561927
Comments: 22
Kudos: 39





	O, Tannenbaum

**Author's Note:**

> After the big downer of Night Shift and the current slightly angsty spot that In All Things is in, I thought we needed some Woven Beauty fluff. This is definitely part of a larger universe that's in my head, and it so far down on the WIP list it's unlikely to see the light of day. For the 31 Days prompt #19: tree.

“A tree farm?”

“Yes.” Weaver looked at Belle French with a bemused smile.

“Um, isn’t it a bit out of the way?”

He gave her a look and gently guided her out of the flow of people up and down the sidewalk, tucking them into the doorway of the used book shop she’d just closed for the day. “It’s just up by Marysville, thirty minutes at best on the interstate.”

She seemed uncertain, and he sighed, reaching for her bare, chilled hands and wrapping them in his larger, warmer ones. “Belle, sweetheart, let me do this for you and Neal.”

Belle started to smile and gave his hands a squeeze.

Moving to Hyperion Heights, Washington from their little house in Storybrooke, Maine had been the first of many changes in her effort to give them a better life. Her new job at the used book store on 5th paid better than the public library in a town of six thousand, but the rent in the Seattle area was near extortion levels. Still, the schools were better, and the opportunities for jobs and culture had made most of it worthwhile.

She’d met Detective Aiden Weaver last year, quite by accident, in the mall parking lot. She’d stupidly walked up to the wrong yellow Bug, and after yanking on the door handle a few times, the proper owner of the vehicle had all but accosted her. A woman screaming about her car being stolen brought a fair bit of attention, as well as an off duty detective, and Belle was very lucky that Weaver recognized an honest mistake and calmed the other woman down. Holidays brought a lot of stress, and in the end the woman apologized, and Belle felt even more like an idiot and got a bit upset.

Weaver was having none of it, and took her for coffee, during which she poured out all her troubles into a venti caramel macchiato, while he gave her sympathetic looks over a small dark roast with two sugars. On their way out, he gave her his card with his personal number written on the back, and instruction to call any time she needed. It was two months before she got up the nerve to ask him for help fixing some cabinets in her kitchen. After that, they were friends, and a few months later, more than.

“And you know how to pick out the best tree, cut it down, and all that?”

Weaver’s head rolled back as it often did when he was exasperated. “Yes. I’ve done it a couple of times.”

She bit her lip. “And you’re sure it will fit on your car?”

His head came forward and he leaned in to kiss her forehead, his lips shockingly warm on her chilled skin.

“I borrowed Rogers’ truck. The tree will fit in the back just fine, and Neal can sit between us in the cab.”

Belle looked up, her eyebrows knit in question. “You...you were planning this?”

He started to smirk and shrugged his shoulders. “It’s two weeks until Christmas, there’s a very bare corner in your living room, and Neal spent most of Tuesday night asking where Santa was going to leave the presents if you didn’t have a tree.”

Her vision blurred as her eyes welled up. “Aiden,” she said softly. “You don’t need -”

He stopped her with a firm kiss. “Yes, I do.” 

When he drew back, she was looking up at him with such adoration and amazement that it made his chest ache. He’d been planning to wait a little longer, trying to gauge how she might feel about everything, but if there was anything his job had taught him, it was that no one was guaranteed tomorrow.

“I love you.” He lifted her hands to his face and pressed a kiss to each one. “And Neal.”

Belle’s lips parted, her gasp coming out in a little puff between them. Before he could take her pause as a hesitation, she pushed up on her toes and sealed her mouth over his, pushing him back against the door to the bookshop with the force of her kiss. His arms went around her, hauling her to him despite the layers of coats and clothes between them.

When they finally parted, her eyes were sparkling, her fingers were gripping the sides of his coat, and she was beaming up at him with a smile wider than he’d ever seen.

“We love you too.”


End file.
